There is old saying “Be careful what you ask for because you just might get it.” I’ve been hoping and praying for rain and this weekend the heavens opened up. It started Friday night and then continued into this morning. This kind of weather makes gardening not an option. But I know my plants are grateful for the nice soaking and hopefully my lawn regains some of its former greenness from this spring. The heat has been a havoc on my lawn. It is at times like this I wish I had a built in irrigation system for my lawn and garden.
In this case, it might of been too much of a good thing. My poor Crepe Myrtle is flopped over from all that rain. Hopefully now that the sun is coming out the water logged blossoms will dry out and it will regain its posture. I’ve had crepe myrtle branches snap in the past from the weight of all that water on their flower heads. I’m hoping this isn’t the case this time.
Just so I don’t seem ungrateful completely, here is a positive thing. My rain barrels are so full they are bulging at the seams. This is how I water my plants throughout the summer for the most part unless I run out of course. They were getting somewhat low so I’m glad my supply of fresh rainwater has been replenished. Look how it is gushing out of the down spot. I have six 50 gallon capacity rain barrels in my yard, but with all the rain we got this weekend I wish I had twice that many.
6 Jul
Too much of good thing?
Posted July 6, 2008 by Racquel in Native Plants, Rain Barrels, Weather Conditions. 16 Comments
Perennial Garden Lover 
Posted by Aunt Debbi/kurts mom on July 6, 2008 at 7:34 pm
Wish you could send some of the rain to Texas. My rain barrel is bone dry.
Posted by Mother Nature on July 6, 2008 at 7:35 pm
Rain barrel. That is something every garderner should have. I need to do something about it.
A few days ago, I planted a clematis and in two or three days it grew a foot of new growth. I had that same excitement you were speaking of in an earlier post.
Donna
Posted by OhioMom on July 6, 2008 at 8:15 pm
Love the crepe myrtle … glad you got “what you asked for” 🙂
Posted by Perennial Gardener on July 6, 2008 at 8:17 pm
Wish I could Aunt Debbi. It seems some people are getting too much and others not a drop. I was really getting worried, because were starting out the summer too dry and we would ended up in a drought wish means no using my tap water either for the garden.
Posted by Perennial Gardener on July 6, 2008 at 8:19 pm
I think you would love having a rain barrel Donna. I know the plants benefit from it immensely as well as my water bill during the summer. 🙂 When your clematis blooms take a picture, I would love to see it. I have 2 new ones this year too and they have new shoots. It’s exciting, isn’t it? 🙂
Posted by janie on July 6, 2008 at 11:45 pm
My Granny always said that the Devil was beating his wife when the sun shone while it rained. shiver…
I have rain barrels all over this place, and a good thing too. My water bill is going to be sky high anyway, but my plants really don’t like ‘city water’. We have not had any rain at all for several months, not even when our neighbors on the same block were getting rain. It stopped 50′ from my back door one day. Now that is a bummer!
We did get about 1/2″ of rain yesterday, so we are some happy. Not enough, but every little bit helps.
I am not going to complain.
That is a pretty crepe myrtle. I love them all, and I have them all over my yard. When I was a new Master Gardener, they had a surprise birthday party for me one year. They gave me 22 crepe myrtles. I planted them, and they all took off. Now I have them in all colors and types and sizes. I think the big majestic white, ‘Natchez’ is my favorite. It has a wonderful fragrance!
I do wish we could grow clematis, the ones with the big blooms. We have success only with the small flowers, really. I do covet the big flowered clematis.
Janie
Posted by Perennial Gardener on July 7, 2008 at 12:19 am
That is a shivering statement Janie. It’s good to see you back in the blogging world again. I guess everyone in Texas is getting a dry spell. I have other people who are garden bloggers from Texas and they are saying the same thing. Thank you, I love my Crepe Myrtle. They do well here. They are what you see planted in the tree lawns and all around the city in parking lots. They are pretty because they come in so many different shades. I would love to get more. That’s a shame about the big flowered clematis, they are outstanding when in full bloom. I like them all small flowers, big flowers etc… Thanks for visiting.
Posted by ChrisND on July 7, 2008 at 12:57 am
Well, I guess your garden will appreciate it… I have only one rain barrel, but would like to install more. It’s great to be able to save and give the plants something that is better than municipal treated water.
Posted by Susie on July 7, 2008 at 1:01 am
Glad you got much needed rain. We had some this afternoon as well but unlike you I don’t have any rain barrels. I’m sure that helps a lot on the water bill.
Posted by Laurie & Chris on July 7, 2008 at 1:13 am
Oh my goodness! That is alot of rain. I bet your flowers are smiling at you!!
Posted by Perennial Gardener on July 7, 2008 at 1:18 am
Chris I’m sure my garden appreciates it but it is still raining and now everything is just soggy. 😦 You can easily make your own rainbarrels. I have a post about making your own.
Susie it does help somewhat on the waterbill, it just depends how much water we get during the summer and how hot it is. Every little bit makes a difference. 🙂
Laurie yes it is alot of rain. We are soggy. 🙂 If they could pick their heads up they might smile.
Posted by beckie on July 7, 2008 at 2:48 am
Rain, good for you! I love those rain barrels. I haven’t seen them around here, but then we rarely have prolonged dry spells. They seem like such a good idea. Wish we could grow crepe mrytles here. Nothing says the south o me like seeing them in bloom.
Posted by Perennial Gardener on July 7, 2008 at 4:02 am
Thanks Beckie. Those are my english rain barrels. I ordered them through gardener supply company online. I have 2 of those and then I have 4 that my husband made for me out of old food storage containers. They are very practical. You are lucky that you don’t have dry spells often. Crepe Myrtles are a truly southern plant, aren’t they?
Posted by Ulinne on July 8, 2008 at 8:40 am
Wir fangen hier bei uns auch das Regenwasser auf. Alles, was zu viel ist, läuft entweder in den Teich oder in ein Beet, das auf diese Weise immer schön feucht gehalten wird.
Bei uns in Deutschland ist das Wetter momentan genau richtig: immer die passende Mischung aus Sonne und Regen. 😉
Liebe Grüße
Ulrike
Posted by Perennial Gardener on July 8, 2008 at 4:18 pm
Collecting rainwater is something gardeners do all over the world I guess Ulrike. I also make my own compost. You are lucky to have such a mixture of weather at this time of year in your garden. We are very hot and dry right now in Virginia. Thanks for visiting!
Posted by Ulinne on July 9, 2008 at 12:46 pm
… aber gern doch. 😉
Was ist das für eine schöne Pflanze in deinem Header?